International metal collective Chaos Rising has released their twenty-second single and video. ‘No Weakness’ is a classic heavy metal track, written by Stéphanie Nolf and featuring new vocalist Astrid Anayalation (USA). The song also features drummer Siddhi Shah (India/Dubai) and two other new Chaos Rising musicians, Keira Kenworthy (UK) on bass, plus an amazing guitar solo from Australia’s Andrea Krakovska. Founded by French multi-instrumentalist Stéphanie Nolf (Unsafe, Syrinx), Chaos Rising is a unique project that brings together female metal musicians from across the globe. ‘No Weakness’ will feature on Chaos Rising’s forthcoming double album.
Texas-based Southern Gothic outfit OCEANS OF SLUMBER releases their newest song, ‘Hearts of Stone’. The track follows their previous release, ‘The Waters Rising’, which came out this past February. Both tracks are off the band’s upcoming album, Starlight and Ash, which is set for release on July 22. “Lost and alone from birth, a product of the institution of life on the streets. Trouble follows this person around like a badge of honor. Grief finding grievances, the perfect formula of despair,” states Cammie Beverly (vocals) about the song.
US rock giants Icon For Hire announce their fifth album The Reckoning due on Sept 9 via Kartel Music Group, and unleash the second single from the project, ‘Dismantled’, a raging and powerful hard rock belter with restless, bristling vocals. Speaking on the track’s lyrics and meaning, lead singer and songwriter Ariel Bloomer says; “‘Dismantled’ came from a very raw and personal place, when I was at a low point. My therapist has been helping me get better at feeling my emotions, so I was sitting on the floor crying and just naming my feelings: broken, pissed off, used, like I’m being stripped for parts. I took that experience to the piano and came out with a ballad. The song totally evolved by the time we got to the studio!”. It’s this ability to deliver bristling lyrics while snaring a heavy and explosive sound that give an indication for where things are headed with Icon For Hire’s upcoming album.
After releasing ‘One More’ and ‘Obsession’, the melodic metal band Secret Rule, releases its third music video for the single ‘The Illusion’ along with the physical release of The Resilient album. Instead, to obtain the whole album on all the digital platforms, fans will have to wait until July 1st. Secret Rule says: “Looking at the future, as we always did, we see clearly the direction this world has taken, and we don’t like it. Social media have completely changed the 21st century, and today they lead and influence public opinion by applying debatable worldwide censorship. Today war is not only on the ground but also fought on the social by hits of propaganda well thought to bring society towards a precise direction, and we can’t pretend not to see what’s happening. Our rights, our freedom, and our lives are at risk. This album keeps bringing ahead our battle for the truth.”
Jinjer have unveiled a music video for their 2021 track ‘Call Me a Symbol.’ The clip begins with a stark message before showcasing some high-energy performance footage: “This video marks the 105th day of Russian invasion of Ukraine. How many more days and nights will our people have to suffer this horrible war?” Regarding the video, Eugene said: “I think this video for ‘Call Me A Symbol’ will forever hold a special and unique place in our hearts as a band. Filmed on our short but awesome European Tour in 2021 tour that almost did not happen because of the pandemic, and now released at such a dark time in which our country has been invaded and there is war on the streets of our home.” He continued: “I really hope this video and this important time in history gives people a new perspective that there are always two sides to everything. Good and Evil, Just and unjust – cherish the good times and face the bad head on… but never ever give up.” [via Consequence]
Montreal, QC’s Eternal Closure has long been a metalcore mainstay in the Eastern Canadian music scene, but is taking on a new identity with their next album At the Center of It All – Chapter I produced with Chris Donaldson (Cryptopsy), which not only showcases their new vocalist, but also gives fans a chance to check out how they have progressed musically, incorporating influences such as post-rock, prog metal, and djent. The first look into their new album is the single ‘Practice What You Preach’, one of the band’s most aggressive cuts. They explain further: “This song is a full-on thrash assault for most of its duration. The chorus then becomes a bit more of a heavy groove. The riffs then become a bit more prog in nature while retaining the thrashy aggressiveness. After the end of the bridge, we bring the song down into a soft clean bridge that slowly develops into this anthemic guitar duo section and eventually goes back to the beginning of the song with the intensity at its peak. The ambient outro then leads directly into Exiled. The lyrics deal with people who think they have it all figured out and resent other people they judge not worthy of speaking on anything.” On ‘Practice What You Preach’, every member gets a chance to shine on one of the album’s most cathartic tracks, where old-school thrash riffs seamlessly blend with melodic guitar solos and modern production. The music video shows a woman starting to see the ugly side of herself that she buried inside, starting to replace who she thought she was. Mirror imagery was used in almost every shot to emphasize the theme. Montreal-based filmmaker Matt Veillette and his team really went out of their way to create powerful and evocative scenes that enhance the song’s message. [via Insane Blog]
Kallias is now streaming their progressive-as-hell new single ‘The Dark Machine.’ The single covers a ton of ground from Opeth-related weirdness to Meshuggah-esque rhythms, and then of course plenty of Jeff Loomis-style shred. So y’know, everything you’d want from a progressive metal song. “‘The Dark Machine’ is a driving force and arguably our most aggressive song to date,” said vocalist and guitarist Nicole Papastavrou. “JP and I really let our death metal roots come out for this one, and Zaki and Chris wove it together beautifully with some melody. The song is about winter, strength and commitment in the alpine.” [via Metal Injection]
Beyond the Black have released a new music video. The new music video, for the track ‘Reincarnation’, is the brand new single from the German symphonic metal band and marks their first new music since 2020’s Hørizøns. The new single is also the band’s first new music since signing with metal label giants Nuclear Blast Records. Speaking about the new single, vocalist Jennifer Haben says, “’Reincarnation’ materialized from a growing recognition of our mortality as humans and the consequent responsibility to live our lives to the fullest. This responsibility means to stand up for yourself, relentlessly fight for your values and also confront your biggest fears. Reincarnation is about becoming your true self and starts a new, epic chapter. This is BEYOND THE BLACK! And BEYOND THE BLACK is back!” [via Distorted Sound]
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